Did you know that the average person will change careers 5-7 times during their working life? This startling statistic reflects a rapidly evolving world where learning new skills is no longer a choice but a necessity.
Even if a person stays in the same field for a long time, one must still become familiar with the latest tools and trends and constantly improve. We either learn to adapt or become obsolete.
Toward the end of this post, I’ll share with you MY “Learning New Skill Example.”
On a personal side, a study by the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology found that people who regularly do self-improvement activities are 30% happier and more successful.
Feeling stuck in a routine and having days that blend into each other can hurt our mental health. I know people who are in this situation. It’s not fun conversing with them.
Trying a new hobby or workout routine can be a missing block. It can lead to a richer, fuller life.
Now, picture this: You’re at a crossroads. You crave growth (personal or professional) but are not sure how to start. What are the best skills to learn for the future?
I was there as well. I’ll share it with you at the end of this letter about MY next big thing.
The Power of Trying New Things
Learning new skills is valuable for personal development and career advancement. You can learn a new language, code, cook, paint, play piano, or start a new exercise routine. The possibilities are endless.
If we fail to learn to improve ourselves, we risk paying the price that stagnation brings. It could be a lack of career or business growth, health decline, or mental and financial dissatisfaction. In the worst cases, it means even failing at our businesses, money problems, and developing depression.
Humanity has its faults. But we would not be where we are today if we weren’t striving to get better: in relationships, in communication, at work, in our hobbies, and in sports. We’re humans, not statues! We are meant to change.
So, how do we change and choose what to focus on?
After pondering and researching, I put together something I called the WWHTB framework.
It’s all common sense; I’m sure you’ve heard it already here and there across the internet.
I will lay it out here in a clear and concise way to help you develop a plan of action for your next skill. (I will also share my action plan soon.)
First, ask yourself: WHY do you need it? Is it to level up your career? Enhance your expertise in the existing skill? Or maybe just to satisfy your curiosity? List all possible “WHY’s.” Define your purpose!
If you own a business, think about how new ideas or strategies can lead to success and innovation. These, in turn, bring growth.
Ever heard of Jan Koum? He founded WhatsApp. His journey from a small village in Ukraine to the founder of one of the world’s most popular social media apps is remarkable. Koum’s path was shaped by self-education and pursuing his passion for computing, which eventually led to the creation of WhatsApp and its later acquisition by Facebook for $19 billion!
If your WHY is all about health and lifestyle changes, you probably were prompted to think of this because something is currently wrong. You may want to improve your health, lose weight, get stronger, and improve sleep. Everyone has their own issues.
In this aspect, my biggest issue is the Celiac disease that I recently got diagnosed with. It harmed my liver. It made it hard to control high blood pressure and caused other issues. The solution was to stop eating anything containing gluten, become more active, and get enough sleep.
So, just over two months ago, I stopped eating all the delicious breads, pasta, and pastries… How I made it work? I chose not to focus on the fact that I’m missing out on these delicacies. Instead, I chose to focus on things that do get better, like observing the positive changes happening to my body and finding new recipes that add variety to my diet.
I joined a gym to get more active. I still struggle with consistency. But I no longer fear going and being there and feeling lost, even when I am alone.
Make a list of all possible WHY’s that come to your mind. Keep it.
Next, the big question: WHAT skill should you focus on? Pick one that aligns with your goals, resonates the most with one of your WHYs, and is the most urgent to address.
Focus on that for now. Then, you can move on to the next WHY on your list, which may change over time.
Now, HOW do you start? Look for the perfect course, grab a compelling book, or binge-watch tutorials. Whatever floats your boat. There are endless resources available.
TIME is precious! Set realistic expectations: when do you want to master the skill, and how many hours per day can you dedicate to it? Plan wisely!
BRACE yourself. The growth process won’t be easy. Get ready to leave your comfort zone, embrace challenges, and push through frustrations.
I was in my second year of undergraduate physics degree a few years back. I had to write long lab reports for the optics class. The format and style of the reports were a big step up from the first-year undergrad lab reports. I had to learn to write in LaTex.
The first report took me at least 20 hours to write! It was sooo slow because I had no clue that LaTex was even a thing before this. I was frustrated and almost ready to give up, as my workload was extremely high then. So, spending that much time just on a single report was ridiculous!
But I pushed through and thanked myself a thousand times after that. Each new report and piece of scientific writing did not scare me anymore. The writing process went much quicker.
WWHTB framework
Here is how MY next big thing looks like:
WHY : improve my career prospects.
WHAT : Learn TensorFlow and SQL.
HOW : Udemy TF course, get TF & SQL certificate.
TIME: I give myself 3 months, 1- 2 hours/day.
How about you?
What’s YOUR next big thing? Learn a new coding language? Train how to do your first single pull-up (I still can’t do it…)?
Not sure you can do it? Maybe choosing something small and following through with it can help boost your self-confidence, bring satisfaction, and spark the craving for more.
Then, move on to something bigger.
Remember, “dreams that do not scare you are not big enough”.
Thanks for reading!
Warmly, Julia